3 wishes for 'X-Files'

Published: Friday, May 19, 2000

George Avalos and Michael LiedtkeKnight Ridder

OK, everyone who caught the latest "X-Files" episode about a lady genie knows what's coming next. Yes, we are going to make our wishes about our favorite TV show, now that Fox and Chris Carter have decided to drag it back for an eighth season, against all better judgment.

Our first and most fervent desire might surprise you because it doesn't involve satisfying our primal attraction to Scully. Sure, we wouldn't mind seeing an episode that featured Scully wearing the same kind of outfit that Barbara Eden wore in the old "I Dream of Jeannie" TV series, but we wouldn't waste a wish on something so frivolous.

More than anything else, we wish Carter would turn more creative responsibility to people who care enough to write cohesive stories in context. Carter doesn't seem to care much anymore, based on the "Closure" and "Fight Club" debacles. David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, William B. Davis and Vince Gilligan, who wrote and directed the most recent chapter, "Je Souhaite," seem to have the best grasp of what this series needs.

By no means was "Je Souhaite" a classic. Yet it was a good, entertaining story filled with bizarre characters and delightful repartee.

The playfulness and warmth that Scully displayed toward Mulder is precisely what you would expect to see after the epiphany of "all things" and her giggly moments with Mulder in "Hollywood A.D." And Mulder never has seemed more at ease with his partner, teasing her about the invisible man and inviting her over to watch something other than a porn video or "Plan 9 from Outer Space."

Which leads to our next wish: that Duchovny's return to the series on a part-time basis (he'll appear in half of next season's 22 episodes) will free him up for more "X-Files" writing and directing. It's a long shot, we know, but at least he's coming back. We would have preferred the series didn't return, but now that we know it will, Mulder needs to be there. It would be a total farce if he weren't.

That leaves us one wish and, frankly, we are having a tough time deciding. We are either going to wish for a conspiracyfilled season that climaxes in a confrontation with the aliens seeking to take over the Earth. Or we might wish for an invitation to "The X-Files" set the next time Scully films a bathtub scene and needs someone to wash her back. We'll let you guess which one we chose.

WHAT WE LEARNED: So it was a reprise of "The Monkey's Paw," but so what? We welcome any "X-Files episode that's a change of pace for this season in other words, when we get a good show. Even if we were tempted to pan "Je Souhaite," we would probably bite our tongues because we might be given a wish we didn't seek: namely, to be forced to watch endless showings of "Arcadia."

It was the little elements, along with devotion to a strong theme, that really propelled this episode into the ranks of the good ones. This even might be an episode worth watching again months or years from now.

Among the deft touches: The bicyclist who suddenly flipped over an unseen object, Scully's extended ministrations over the corpse of the invisible man, and the incredible, blundering stupidity of Anson Stokes and his brother Leslie, who couldn't get their acts together even if the genie granted a wish of unlimited wishes. With the incompetent Leslie in command of the genie, we were happy to see Anson succeed in his excruciating effort to spark an explosive fire.

The genie herself is very cleverly drawn. Sure, she's sarcastic and maybe even a bit annoyed with her clients, but who wouldn't be after being forced to endure listening to hundreds of years of stupid and selfish wishes? The genie isn't in the same league as the wish-meister from Disney's "Aladdin," but after Robin Williams' frenetic portrayal, perhaps no one could be.

But the genie, known only as Jen, does try to be helpful. When the Stokes brothers are flummoxed about their wishes, she tries to give as broad a hint as possible that perhaps the best wish of all would be to restore Leslie's ability to walk. But their insistence on selfish wishes eventually dooms them both.

And this leads to another neat moral tucked away inside the episode. Determined to avoid the mistakes of the Stokes brothers, Mulder figures if he only can craft a completely altruistic wish, he can accomplish something remarkable. And he does, but he achieves only the notoriety of an infamous act. Mulder's wish for peace on Earth becomes the peace of the grave and the stillness of an apocalypse. So of course, before long, Mulder is down to one last wish.

Mulder ultimately takes the safe way out. He finally frees Jen from her centuries-old enslavement to those who discover and unroll the rug. He discovers he should deploy his altruism in a very personal way.

Along the way, Mulder realizes we can't simply wish away our problems. We have to confront them. And as Scully learned in "all things," perhaps Mulder better knows that we need to take the time to savor the individual moments. All of this leads to another comfortable moment between Mulder and Scully as they watch the movie.

WHAT WE DON'T KNOW: What are some of Mulder's other non-pornographic films? Based on his admiration of "Caddyshack," we suspect these cinematic classics might also be in his library: "Animal House," "Blazing Saddles," "Stripes," and "Planes, Trains and Automobiles." Did Mulder follow through on his promise to watch "Steel Magnolias?" If so, how many beers do you think he had to guzzle to kill the pain?

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "I think you missed a spot here. I can see straight through to his butt," Mulder said to Scully as she worked on an invisible corpse.